Human Powered Helicopter

The Igor I. Sikorsky Human
Powered Helicopter Competition was launched 1980, and was often described as
impossible by experts until shortly before it was claimed in July 2013. This
formidable task compelled both young and experienced students of science alike
to explore uncultivated regions of physics and design. It drove them to
invent machines that were impossibly large, and impossibly light. And
ultimately, these challengers proved that the impossible was possible.

For the purpose of inspiring
the next generation of engineering explorers and dreamers, AHS International
will be introducing a new vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) challenge in the
coming months. It is our hope that this challenge will – in the spirit of the
Human Powered Helicopter Competition – inspire designers and technology
explorers to invent aircraft that expand the paradigms of what VTOL technology
can currently achieve.

Stay tuned!

The AHS Sikorsky Prize has been won by AeroVelo!

July 11, 2013

Read about this landmark event in the official AHS HPH Press Release. Also, check out all the latest HPH news, and visit our YouTube Channel for the latest videos. We've also created a media kit with backgrounders, fact files, full-resolution images and more.

AHS International initiated the Igor I. Sikorsky Human Powered Helicopter (HPH) Competition in 1980, with a prize of $25,000. After nearly 30 years without a successful design, AHS was grateful that Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. greatly increased the size of the award by pledging $250,000 for the first successful controlled flight of a human-powered helicopter that met all of the requirements of AHS International's Igor I. Sikorsky Human Powered Helicopter Competition.

A one minute hovering time, a momentary achievement of 3 meters altitude, and controlling the vehicle within a constrained box – all in the same flight – was required to win the AHS prize. See the official HPH Regulations for full details.

"The AHS HPH Competition isn’t about creating a
practical machine. It is an engineering challenge to the vertical flight
technical community. This is a multi-disciplinary project that harnesses
technical skills and teamwork to overcome what many have said for three decades was an
impossible challenge."